Comment on "a tensorial based progressive damage model for fibre reinforced polymers"

This communication is in response to unsubstantiated claims, arising from misinterpretations and misrepresentations, made by Bogenfield and Kreikemeier in their recent paper, "A tensorial based progressive damage model for fibre reinforced polymers" Bogenfeld and Kreikemeier (2017), on a damage model developed by Falzon et al. (2015). While details of this model have been extensively reported in a number of publications (e.g. Tan et al., 2015; Falzon and Tan, 2016; Chiu et al., 2016), and validated through comprehensive experimental programmes, this brief paper provides additional information on the damage model's formulation for the purpose of clarification and rebutting the conclusions in Bogenfeld and Kreikemeier (2017). The test cases reported in Bogenfeld and Kreikemeier (2017), to demonstrate the apparent shortcomings of the damage model in Tan et al. (2015), are repeated here to show that the alleged shortcomings are non-existent and consequently provide further support for the robustness and predictive capability of Falzon's progressive damage model.